Hog carcass dehairing is typically accomplished through the use of a machine that includes multiple star wheels with paddles (or scrapers) attached to the ends (points) of the star wheels. The hog carcasses are moved through the machine past the star wheels which rotate the paddles against the carcasses to remove the hair. The paddles are flexible to prevent damage to the carcass, and include metal cleats or nails on the end opposing the connection to the star wheel to aid in grabbing and removing the hair from the carcasses.
The paddles of dehairing machines must properly balance the need to provide sufficient friction to remove the coarse, bristly hog hair, with the requirement to not damage the bones, pork or the hide of the carcass. Thus, paddles need to be sturdy and stiff, but yet also have flexibility. Numerous materials and paddle designs of the prior art have been used to achieve the above-referenced balance. Many conventional paddles are constructed of layers of nylon or other fabric that are laminated together. Nevertheless, prior art paddles break apart (or delaminate) fairly rapidly in the harsh, high temperature (roughly 190 degrees), wet (from steam and/or hot water), environment inside dehairing machines. Water or moisture gets between the layers, and the high temperature and constant flexing stress on the paddles causes the layers to quickly delaminate.
Rapid break-down means frequent stoppage of the line. Replacing broken paddles is a dirty, nasty and time-consuming job exposing workers to unpleasant and potentially dangerous environments inside the machine. In addition, when a paddle breaks apart or delaminates during operation of the machine, debris from the paddle can contaminate the carcasses being dehaired in the machine. Prior art solutions to increase paddle life include adding a brace or backer to paddles. Such paddle backers, while increasing strength, also reduce flexibility of the paddles, and also increase costs significantly. Therefore, it would be beneficial to provide a paddle that is flexible, but that does not break down as rapidly as those of the prior art. It would also be beneficial to provide a paddle that provides reduced risk of contamination when the paddle fails/breaks apart.
The general inventive concept provides a solution to these and other disadvantages of the current state-of-the-art.